Those are kings whom God appoints, but as they know not His secret purposes, men decline to acknowledge those who unjustly seize some kingdom. All the same, the saying in the Proverbs of Solomon, chapter viii., is incontrovertible: Per me rages regnant (v. 15, 'By me kings reign and princes decree justice'). God alone raises men to the throne to be either a scourge or a solace to their subjects. Thus, although the holy men of Mecca declined to accept the gifts sent by Aurangzeb, because Shâhjahân, his father, was still alive, I shall not, in this my book, delay speaking of him as king until the death of Shâhjahân, but from the commencement I feel obliged to concede his being such, for as an undisputed monarch he ruled over Hindûstân; and this course is demanded by this history to facilitate the reader's understanding thereof.
Finding himself now arrived at the goal of all his hopes, his father in prison, his brothers dead, Aurangzeb ordained a nine days' festival, during which he received congratulations and valuable gifts from the great men of the kingdom. He continued his accustomed sacrice of pimento, which he began when prince in the Dakhin. This was conducted in the following way: Having taken a handful of pimento and said a prayer, he threw it on some live charcoal, where it was allowed to smoke for some moments.
